Connections
by RainbowTroller
Summary: AU. Dawn's daughter, Faye, would be moving to Chance Harbor. Then the bomb dropped and the pieces all landed in place. Finally, they had their sixth member. All it had taken, and Diana felt guilty as she thought about it, was for her to become an orphan.
1. Chapter 1

**Summary**: AU. Faye, an orphan after her mother is killed in a seemingly random house fire, moves to Chance Harbor to reside with a cousin's family. The moment that she gets there, however, she is suddenly the subject of interest for more than one girl in her newly discovered Circle.

**WARNING**: This is a femslash story.

**Author's Note**: I haven't decided if this will be Fayana or Chamberlake. So... feedback?

* * *

><p>Chance Harbor.<p>

There was nothing all that special about the place. It was just another small town in the middle of nowhere; the kind in which all of the occupants pretty much knew each other. Obviously, they weren't all close. More or less, though, a random person plucked off of the street could be connected back to a close friend or family member.

Still, Diana Meade called it home and she always had. It was the sort of place that tended to trap families there for generations. When she was younger, before everything had happened, she had hoped and wished for a way to escape the little town. She wanted a bigger future. She wanted a way out forever so that she wouldn't be destined to stick around with a father - she loved him but he was still struggling and it was hard - and the omnipresent ghost of a mother she hadn't even known.

But then she had made an important discovery that changed everything. Suddenly, she had every reason in the world to stay in the little town she had been so desperate and eager to leave the moment that she graduated from high school. She had found the family Book of Shadows. She had discovered that not only was she herself a full-blooded witch, but so was her entire group of friends.

Well, she used the term loosely.

Each of them had lost a parent in some tragic accident when they were young. One of them had lost both his mother and father. They hadn't even known their parents, having all been around the same age. About one at the time of the accident, give or take a month or two. Actually, they were only separated by a couple of months when the youngest of them, Melissa Glaser, was compared to the oldest, Adam Conant. Diana, Melissa, and Adam lost their mothers; Cassie lost her father; Nick lost both parents.

They had always had this one tragic event tying them together, though some more than others. Adam's father had maintained, throughout their childhoods and even to the present day, that his son was 'written in the stars' to be with Cassie Blake. Beautiful, blonde, blue-eyed Cassie Blake. It seemed that the 'fates' agreed with him, not that Diana really believed in such a thing, because the pair had been dating for almost five years. Five years and they still seemed to be going strong.

According to her book, there had to be six members for their Circle to be complete. They had only the five. Until recently, there had been nothing that they could do about it. It wasn't like Diana could go asking around about who the sixth family was and where they lived. None of the others, except Nick who was interested in the power that a full Circle would bring, actually seemed to care that part of their group would be forever missing.

But, again, that had been until recently.

Her father had had her sit down with him one night as he struggled to express himself clearly. Apparently, an old friend of his, Dawn Chamberlain, had been killed in a horrible house fire. The only reason that he was bringing it up was because her daughter, Faye, would be moving to Chance Harbor. The girl was an orphan. Diana sat up a little straighter. There was a sensation of heat in her abdomen; a stirring that she couldn't quite put into words. Still, she knew. She _knew_ before he said the words exactly what he was going to say.

Then the bomb dropped and the pieces all landed in place. Finally, they had their sixth member. All it had taken, and Diana felt a sharp twinge of immediate guilt as she thought about it, was for the girl to become as alone in the world as Nick was. More so, actually, since she didn't have any siblings to turn to for anything. Not that Jake was present in Nick's life at all, but at least the boys knew that the other was alive. It was more than Faye had.

"Faye Chamberlain." Nick mused over the name, seeing how it rolled off of his tongue. He cocked his head and fell back into his usual silence. He made some sort of muttered comment that caused Melissa to roll her eyes and hit him in the chest, but Diana didn't bother to ask. No doubt it was something vulgar about Faye event though they hadn't even met her yet.

It had been a day since the news about Faye had come from her father and she was trying to work out a plan to bring the newest addition to their Circle into the fold. Cassie agreed that it should probably be done gently and slowly and Adam, who at times displayed no sense own individual thought, readily agreed with his girlfriend. Melissa and Nick, on the other hand, failed to give input. They didn't need to. Diana had an idea of what it would be. Nick would want to add her to the Circle as quickly as possible, but he wasn't one for interpersonal politics. Melissa wouldn't put forth an opinion until she had had sufficient time to consider the options.

When Diana was waiting around the hallway at school, trying to catch a glimpse of the Chamberlain girl, she felt a presence arrive at her side and smiled slightly. Cassie was just as curious to see Faye as she was. They wanted to get an idea of who they would be spending most amount of their time with. The first sign that she was coming came when a boy was so busy craning his neck to look down the hall that the side of his head collided with a doorframe.

Diana couldn't blame him, to be honest. The thought made her face color rapidly.

Faye Chamberlain didn't make eye contact with a single person. In fact, those brightly green eyes didn't even acknowledge the fact that she and Cassie were blatantly watching her every move. With porcelain skin and a darkly colored, alluring wardrobe, it was no wonder that several people found themselves suddenly distracted as she passed. Everything about the girl screamed rebellious bad girl. She seems reclusive but confident in herself and secure enough to not care a number of her new classmates were rudely staring at her.

She was strong, Diana could see that clearly enough. But it was also certain to her that the girl was in pain behind the fortified walls that she erected for the rest of the world to see. She could see it in the slight way that her eyes flicked, the way that her hands tightened around her books, the way that the air around her seemed to thicken from a raw sense of emotion. Of course she was in pain, Diana mentally kicked herself for being an idiot.

Diana couldn't help herself after another couple of seconds of gazing curiously at the brunette. She followed along behind, breaking away from a Cassie who was sharply protesting in a hushed voice for her not to crowd the new girl. Still, she ignored the blonde in favor of satisfying her need to address the newcomer. She just… she had to. So, she went right up to her locker with a smile curling her lips upward.

"Faye Chamberlain, right?" The intense green eyes shifted to her and she could see cautious curiosity had been piqued not to mention a slight amused glimmer. "Diana Meade, our-"

"I know." Faye cut her off abruptly in a deadpan. A pause and then a small smirk. "You're very pretty."

With those words, Faye slammed the locker shut, turned on her heel and was gone. Diana was left bewildered and, worst of all, with heat crawling up her neck as she replayed the words in her mind. _You're very pretty_


	2. Chapter 2

**Summary**: AU. Faye, an orphan after her mother is killed in a seemingly random house fire, moves to Chance Harbor to reside with a cousin's family. The moment that she gets there, however, she is suddenly the subject of interest for more than one girl in her newly discovered Circle. _[__**Fayana**__, Chamberlake.]_

**Rating**: PG13 to R

**Author's Note**: Well, the votes are in and it's Chamberlake with 4 votes and Fayana with 8 votes. So, this will ultimately end up with Faye and Diana together. (Chamberlake fans, I will write Chamberlake one-shots if you'd like to send in prompts to my tumblr account where, by the way, all new updates are posted first. I-am-the-rainbow-troll is my username.)

* * *

><p>When Diana trudged into the abandoned house to think over her failed efforts to make contact with Faye, she found herself shocked into utter silence. There was the sound of distinctly unfamiliar laughter accompanied by a voice that was very obviously Nick's. She hesitated at the front door, wondering if she should check to see who it was that he had brought to their hiding place or not.<p>

"Nick?" She called as she made her way forward, unable to resist her curiosity.

And there they were, lounging together on the couch. The site made her stomach jolt a little bit and she glanced around the room. The place could not have looked more suspicious even if they had tried intentionally. Really, the only thing that they were missing was a giant banner hanging from the ceiling proclaiming their collective supernatural heritage. The herbs, the multitude of books on plants, the jars of odd things like dead insects and gathered shed snakeskin. Nothing in the abandoned house screamed normalcy.

Diana observed the scene and couldn't stop herself from smiling slightly. Even though Nick was in a long-running relationship with Melissa, he was still a horrible flirt. Luckily, Melissa was aware of the fact and usually berated him for his antics. Flirting didn't necessarily mean anything and it seemed to somehow be working as a method of cheering up. It was the first time that she had seen anything close to a true, genuine smile on Faye's face all day.

"Nick, I see you've met Faye Chamberlain." The boy looked over at her as she spoke in as polite of a tone as possible.

She had spent so much time with the boy that they could speak volumes to each other without even using a single word. They held each other's gazes steadily, neither revealing anything outwardly to the newcomer. _Trust me_, the bright blue eyes said, _just trust me and see what happens._ She quirked an eyebrow, but backed off as Nick casually moved into his story of the first encounter that he had had with Faye.

Most people assumed that she would be best friends with Cassie Blake and Adam Conant. That was the first impression that people picked up whenever they saw her interact with her odd group of friends. In reality, she spent far more time with Nick and Melissa. There was a reason for that; a good reason. Adam had a nasty habit of being the sulky type of guy who got jealous too easily, made eyes full of reluctant desire at the girls that he couldn't have, and honestly just wasn't that fun tone around with all of his dark brooding. Unfortunately, wherever Cassie went, Adam went. Adam was the basic obstacle standing in her way of being actual, close friends with the generally friendly, if not introverted and at times self-righteous, blonde.

No, Diana spent the majority of her time with Nick Armstrong and Melissa Glaser. While she didn't entirely agree with some of their behavior, they were easy-going and relaxed. Nick may have been a shameless flirt, but he loved Melissa and that was clear enough when they were together. They'd been together for almost two years. Nick was the strong, silent type of guy. He was loyal to his friends with the protective instincts and drive of a German shepherd. Melissa was just as quiet around the general public, but great fun when Diana hung out with her in very small groups. Nick wasn't afraid to call Diana out when she was being obnoxious or overwhelming. Melissa was the first to comfort her when she needed it.

"So, are all of you into this Wicca thing?" Faye's voice jerked her back to reality and she must have looked confused because the girl chuckled softly and pointedly gestured to their spell ingredients scattered all about the room. "I mean, that's what this is, right? A Wicca thing? Or, what, some place that you perform Pagan rituals?"

"No, no, not Wicca or Pagan…" Diana faltered. She wanted to kick herself for being so tense and uncertain about how to explain it.

"Uh-huh. Right. You just connect dead bugs and snakeskin for the hell of it, is that it? Some weird group fetish or hobby?" Faye raised an eyebrow skeptically, a smirk playing on her lips. Nick grinned at her indecision.

"No, about that, we should probably-" But she never got to finish her sentence as Melissa, Cassie and Adam all filed into the building, the latter two talking in somewhat loud voices. Melissa rolled her eyes and murmured under her breath about some petty argument that they were having before making her way over to sit next to Nick.

Faye looked a bit uneasy at being alone with the suddenly larger group of people. Her eyes flickered from one person to the next and it was like something clicked in her head as recognition sprang up again and again. That was when Diana could almost feel the suspicion and anger sparking to life in the atmosphere. The others must have sensed the change because each and every one of them turned their heads to look at the lost member of their Circle.

"You were all watching me today." Faye stated, sliding to her feet as she eyed them individually. "Cassie in my English and Chemistry classes. Guy Liner outside of my math class. Melissa in the hallway. Hot Chick came right up to me and then reappeared after school, watching me at my car. And Nick, here, came and invited me along after school. What the hell is this, a really oddly friendly small town greeting or what?"

A light shattered overhead and she jumped.

"Faye, please, just be calm and-"

"And what, exactly? I mean, Nick is nice and everything but this whole thing is more than a little creepy." With Faye's temper and uneasiness obviously flaring up, Diana hesitated. In that second of failure to act, Cassie moved first. She reached out and wrapped her fingers gently around the confused brunette's hand while starting the speak. The words, it turned out, were unnecessary. The moment that their hands touched, the air became supercharged with energy. Then a fire burst into life at Faye's feet.

Faye jerked away and stepped back, aghast and staring.

"Well." Nick's voice was amused. "Seems like you should stick around for an explanation, Chamberlain.


	3. Chapter 3

She wasn't sure how or when it had happened, but, somehow, Faye actually was taking to the news that she was a witch just fine. In fact, there had been no angry outbursts, no running away, no blabbing to the world. Nothing.

Okay, sure, she had thought them all worthy of being in an asylum at first. After those feelings died down and they provided sufficient proof, she was all for it. For the last week, Faye had been spending every moment of her spare time at the abandoned house. She was, obviously, studying up and trying to get stronger.

Diana, and she felt guilty about it, had spent a lot of time observing her behavior when she wasn't trying to make friends with her. Faye was a loner type, that must was obvious. She neglected to join in group meetings and mostly hung around with their collected texts when no one else was around. She would sit there, curled up on the couch, and just read. The dark hair that fell in front of her face didn't even serve as a distraction as she concentrated so intently on the words before her. It was as though every letter was captivating to her.

"Faye, hi." Diana quietly interrupted her reading time.

Faye startled and looked as though she was going to flee from the house before calming herself visibly. They gazed at each other for couple of long moments and then Faye just smiled slightly. A slender finger beckoned her forward and Diana found herself following the unspoken order for reasons that she didn't quite understand. Fascination? Enthrallment? Curiosity? Whatever it was, she couldn't stop herself from just going along with in a very uncharacteristic way.

"So, Diana Meade…" Faye drawled her name slowly, letting it role smoothly off of her tongue in an unexpectedly sensual fashion. It was obvious that she was just playing and teasing, but Diana couldn't stop herself from blushing nonetheless. It was only when she seated herself tentatively next to the other girl that the silence was broken. "I used to hear quite a lot about you, you know."

"Oh… Really?" Diana faltered and she suddenly wondered why Faye had never been mentioned in her household before the fire if she had been talked about by Mrs. Chamberlain. For a few seconds she refrained, but then she couldn't quite help herself. She was curious and she wanted to get a feel for what Faye's thoughts of her were. "What… what did you hear about me, exactly?"

"You're Diana Meade. Pretty, well-liked, outgoing and overachieving." Faye cocked her head to the side before continuing, "You're the girl who is going places in life. Big dreams, yeah? You're the girl with the ambitious drive and the grades to match. You're the perfect Diana Meade, aren't you? That's what I was always told."

"Grades?" Diana blurted out, brow furrowed in confusion. "How do you know about my grades though?"

"Your father told Cassie's mother who kept my mom updated on, well, all of you. My mom would talk about all of her friends' kids. But, especially you. I think that she would rather have had you for a kid instead of 'hangs-out-with-the-wrong-people' me." An odd expression flickered across her face but Diana couldn't decipher what it was before the moment passed. Then there was a cool smile that didn't give anything away.

"No, Faye…" But Diana, so usually well-spoken, just couldn't find the right words to say. Faye didn't seem to want them anyway because all that she responded with was a dry smirk and a lofty wave of her hand.

"Did you want something, Diana?" Faye was blunt and obviously a bit restless at another person's presence.

"No. No. I just…" But then an idea sparked and she rushed out in a hopeful mess, "Actually, yes. Faye, I wanted to see if you would come spend a weekend with all of us. You know, for a camping trip or something. So we can… get to know you better and, and," She struggled to find anything that would keep the skeptical witch's attention and ended up with, after a glance down at the book in Faye's grasp, "And practice magic with us. Things like that."

Faye stared at her blankly. Diana almost opened her mouth to speak again when she saw a change in her companion's expression. There was a light of something like excitement and anticipation gleaming in those brightly verdant eyes. It seemed that one thing or another about the offer had sparked a passion in the usually sarcastically apathetic girl. It was a nice change to see some real life in those eyes for the first time since her arrival in Chance Harbor.

"No. We're going to go to my family's lake house this weekend. We can practice magic there and," A curl of the lip, "'bond' with each other."

Silence fell between them. Diana, as she gazed down at Faye's hands, found herself thinking back to their very first encounter in the hallway. She had been fascinated by the girl with the heavy walls of protection and demeanor of layered arrogance and disinterest in those around her because it wasn't at all what she had been expecting. Faye hadn't even allowed her to introduce herself, she had simply said, '_You're very pretty._'

But, why?

"The first time that we met, what made you say that I was pretty?" Diana reddened at the raised eyebrow and added, hastily, "Not that it wasn't a very nice thing to say or that I was offended or anything like that. I'm just wondering because, I mean, it's not the most common thing that someone says to a girl that they've just met. I was just… you know, curious."

Faye returned to reading her book and Diana was convinced that it was a sign telling her that she had asked too many questions and should leave. However, when she awkwardly climbed to her feet and made to leave the room with a mumbled farewell, she was stopped by a flat, matter-of-fact voice that made her freeze.

"Because it's true, Diana. It's just stupid that people don't usually say what they think."

Oh.


	4. Chapter 4

"Diana?"

She sat up straighter in her seat, alarmed. When had it become dark outside? Was she really that lost in her thoughts that she couldn't even spare a moment to realize that it had turned from day to night? Jeez. This didn't bode well.

"Sorry, Faye." Diana hastily apologized, worried that she may have offended the other girl by being so quiet during the majority of their car ride. It was extremely rude of her to have been so out of touch and silent. Seriously, it was supposed to be a bonding experience during which they were meant to get comfortable with each other and talk. She was supposed to be making friends with Faye, but she found that she was failing miserably. At least she hadn't offended her and turned her into an enemy by accident.

"You think way too much, Diana." Faye didn't pull any punches. She said exactly what was on her mind, exactly when she wanted to say it. It was refreshing. Nick usually just curled his lip when he disagreed with something and stayed, more or less, silent. Even Melissa tried to keep the peace by keeping her opinions mostly to herself.

"What do you mean?"

The answer never came as the car halted and the engine was turned off. Faye just looked sideways at her for a moment as though considering whether or not to speak and then opened the driver's side door and stepped out. Diana mimicked her and dropped onto the slightly damp ground, her feet sinking down just so in the soft clay. Her shoes, as she glanced down to check the pale soles, were stained a bit orange. Still, it was nothing that couldn't be quickly rinsed out, so she wasn't going to think too much about it.

By the time that Diana was at the back of the car to grab her bag, Faye was already making her way inside of the house before anyone else. Nick and Melissa were talking in low voices, taking their time in observing the large residence. Diana shouldered her own bag as she looked over at Adam's car. There was Adam, unloading not just his bag but Cassie's as well. And Cassie…

Wait, where was Cassie? Diana cocked her head, confused. It was odd enough that Cassie was even allowing Adam to do something so boyfriend-ly for her like carrying her bag. Usually, it was the sort of thing that she insisted on doing herself. But, something was obviously different because Cassie was nowhere near her boyfriend. In fact, Diana looked over by the doorway, she was following Faye inside the house right at her heel.

Cassie had left Adam in favor of talking to Faye. For some reason, this observation made Diana feel deeply unsettled and something hot burned in her chest. She slammed the side door of the car shut with a sharp shove and then had to stop herself from stomping forward in irritation. That was stupid. If Cassie wanted to make friends then, by all means, she should make friends. They were all supposed to be getting acquainted with the newest member of their Circle. it was only for the best, after all. If they bonded, then their magic would be stronger. Ultimately, it was for the good of the Circle. Cassie was only trying to be nice and trying to do right by the Circle, that was all.

Feeling weakly reassured from whatever she had been feeling, she wiped her feet on the mat just outside of the front door before neatly taking off her shoes and setting them just inside. She continued with her bare feet padding against the dark wood paneling in the direction of the voices a couple of rooms in. Her toes made contact with soft carpeting and she smiled a bit at the comforting sensation and the relief from the otherwise harsh coolness of the floor before.

Cassie was acting a bit oddly. Too oddly for Diana to be comfortable. She was close to Faye with an unusual glint in her eye. Her eyelashes were fluttering, her hair was sweeping in front of her eyes just enough to make her look innocent, her bright blue eyes were glowing with playful humor, and her hand lingered only seconds long enough that they could be interpreted as something more than amiable intrigue. It could all easily be misinterpreted as flirting, but that would be ridiculous. Cassie had never flirted with anyone else during the time that she had been with Adam. Certainly, she had never shown any interest in another girl.

Diana was just overreacting, that was it. It was just a friendly gesture; a meaningless interaction. Still, Diana felt oddly as though she was an intruder witnessing something that she shouldn't be; something potentially private. So, she did the only thing that she could think of in that moment that wouldn't make her look too awkward: she forced out a cough.

The pair looked up. Faye didn't linger and moved off to another room with just a smirk, but Cassie stood there. She looked a little bewildered, even frustrated, but quickly changed her expression to smile at Diana. Quiet footsteps that could only belong to Melissa and Nick alerted them to the presence of others. Adam was the last to join the group with his clomping footfalls and his muttering about the weather as he slammed the front door shut.

Adam made his way over to his girlfriend, completely ignoring the fact that Diana was there as he pulled her to him by the waist and engaged her in a deep, tongue-filled kiss. Feeling unsettled at the whole display—one would think that she would be accustomed to it after so many years—she turned her back on them and followed the sound of voices through the hallway. There was laughter that could only have belonged to Faye because it was far too throaty to be Melissa's. It led her into the kitchen where Faye was taking drinks orders.

Diana stood in the doorway, watching for a couple of minutes. It was no joke, Faye was talented at what she was doing. The girl was mixing drinks like a legitimate bartender. Nick's Hurricane was in a tall glass and colorful while Melissa's Tie Me to the Bedpost was a lovely green in a martini glass with a cherry settled at the bottom.

"Diana, come here. I'll pour something for you."

Faye didn't wait for her to give a suggestion, she just pulled out a glass like the one holding Nick's drink and started adding ingredients to a cocktail shaker. Rum, vodka, schnapps, cranberry juice, orange juice. Her drink, deep and orange, was strained into her glass and then pushed over to her. Faye leaned forward on her elbows, an innocent smile gracing her lips.

"What is it?" Diana had to ask after the first tentative sip.

"Screaming Sex with the Bartender."

The blood rushed to her face and her grip spasmodically tightened on the glass. She wasn't allowed the chance to respond as Adam and Cassie joined them. Faye grinned broadly as she listened to the requests from the couple and went about pouring the appropriate amounts of each ingredient. It wasn't long before the drinks were prepared, but Cassie lingered behind even though Adam had gone to the next room with Melissa and Nick.

"So, now that I have you all liquored up, can we go do magic?" Faye asked the pair of them as she poured herself a second drink. Wow, Diana swallowed nervously, Faye could certainly down her alcohol without a problem. It was a bit intimidating.

"Of course," Cassie motioned nonchalantly for her to follow. She caught Diana's eye. There was a strange look into those baby blues, but their contact didn't hold long enough for Diana to figure out just what the hell it was.

"Faye wants to do magic-"

"Can't we do that later? Let's play something like, like," Adam struggled to find a game and gulped down part of his drink to gain some time, "Truth or dare?"

"Seriously?" Faye rolled her eyes which caused the boy to bristle irritably. "Truth or dare instead of magic? Uh, no. That wasn't the deal with this weekend. I was told that we would do magic, that's why we're here."

"She's right, Adam." Cassie agreed before Diana could. He looked affronted and sulky.

It took another half hour of Adam shooting down every idea that they came up with that finally ended with Nick snapping and telling him to shut the hell up before they decided on an idea for an experimental spell to practice with. They figured that it might be stronger if they were physically touching each other and the thought made Diana feel… odd. She shivered when she linked hands with Faye.

"So, ready for some magic?" Faye glanced sideways and winked. Diana felt her face heat up


End file.
